Formative Feedback in Mathematics Teacher Education: An Activity and Affordance Theory Perspective

Abstract

The increasingly high number of students’ enrolment has necessitated the recent attention on the use of computer-based assessment systems for feedback delivery to students for mathematical learning, such as Numbas. However, little is known about the affordances of Numbas in the research literature. The purpose of this study is to investigate the affordances of Numbas, their perception and actualization by students and teachers, and their effects on mathematical learning from an activity and affordance theory perspective. The study follows a qualitative research design using semi-structured interviews of six students and two teachers. The results reveal the perception and actualization of several affordances at the technological, mathematical, and pedagogical level. Conclusions and future work are drawn from the results to promote Numbas formative feedback for teaching and learning mathematics.